There have been various apparatuses for preventing an automobile from being accelerated although an accelerator pedal is accidentally pushed down in spite of the driver's intention to apply a brake in order to brake the automobile in the operation of the automobile and the present applicant has proposed a practical apparatus adapted to prevent the acceleration of the automobile when the accelerator pedal is accidentally pushed down (see WO95/31349 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,797,467, for example).
This apparatus comprises an accelerator interlocking member interlocking with an accelerator pedal, an acceleration function follow-up member associated with speed adjustment means such as a throttle valve of a gasoline automobile or a speed variable signal generator of an electric car and magnetic coupling means to magnetically couple the accelerator interlocking member and the acceleration function follow-up member with each other in a normal state and coupling release means to release the magnetic coupling of the accelerator interlocking member and the acceleration function follow-up member when the accelerator pedal is erroneously pushed down in place of a brake pedal.
This apparatus is so constructed that the acceleration function is never damaged when the accelerator pedal is pushed down for the purpose of the normal acceleration, but the acceleration of the car is prevented by releasing the magnetic coupling of the accelerator interlocking member and the acceleration function follow-up member when the accelerator pedal is erroneously pushed down with an abnormal pedaling force while mistaken for the brake pedal.
The release of this magnetic coupling is performed by a shock power, which occurs when the accelerator pedal is pushed down by the abnormal pedaling force or by an engagement of the acceleration function follow-up member against a second stop member caused by the displacement of the accelerator pedal beyond the displacement quantity required for the normal acceleration function by deforming a first stop member with the abnormal pedaling force of the accelerator pedal.
Especially, since the erroneous operation of the accelerator is detected by deforming the first stop member due to the engagement of the accelerator pedal or its interlocking member against the first stop member when the accelerator pedal is pushed down with the large pedaling force beyond the pedaling stroke required when the normal travel of the car is performed, the apparatus proposed by the applicant is more practical than the other prior accelerator erroneous operation prevention apparatuses in which the erroneous operation of the accelerator is prevented by detecting only the pedaling stroke of the accelerator pedal.
Also, since this apparatus proposed by the applicant magnetically couples the accelerator interlocking member with the acceleration function follow-up member, as the driver removes its foot far away from the accelerator pedal when the driver notices the erroneous operation of the accelerator pedal, the accelerator interlocking member and the acceleration function follow-up member are again magnetically coupled by springs urged thereto so that the original condition is restored. Thus, a special restoration operation of the apparatus for getting the original condition is not required and therefore high convenience can be gotten in the actual use.
This apparatus comprises lock means to mechanically couple the accelerator interlocking member and the acceleration function follow-up member with each other so as to prevent the function of the coupling release means. Since the driver manually operates this lock means by means of a change-over switch or the like with the driver's intention, it will be used based on the driver's belief that the erroneous operation of the accelerator never happens.
Since the erroneous operation of the accelerator happens due to the error of the driver when the car is stopping or starts and therefore the driver operates the accelerator pedal with its consciousness after the car enters the normal travel, the erroneous operation of the accelerator never happens thereafter. Thus, when the car enters the normal travel, the accelerator erroneous operation prevention apparatus is not required to work and the accelerator pedal is sometimes pushed down quickly with a large force in the case where the overtaking operation is performed during a high-speed travel on a highway or during an uphill travel. In these cases, the manual operation of the lock means is troublesome and the travel of the car while overlooking the lock operation should be avoided.
The object of the invention is to provide a normal travel security apparatus for an automobile equipped with an accelerator erroneous operation prevention apparatus adapted to never perform an accelerator erroneous operation prevention function while the automobile is traveling in a normal state without any occurrence of the accelerator erroneous operation.